The Kern County Fair, which will have a virtual look in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, opened up its drive-thru food event Friday for those looking to chow down on fair cuisine. The food pickup will be held over the next two weekends Friday through Sunday — Sept. 25-27 and Oct. 2-4 —…
The California Living Museum reopened its native zoo and gardens on Wednesday for folks looking to get out and see some animals and wildlife. CALM will be open Wednesdays through Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The facility’s indoor exhibits, playground and train will remain temporarily closed…
The MLK CommUNITY Initiative celebrated its one-year anniversary by living out its essence: continuing to support southeast Bakersfield.
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General Shafter School District opened its doors to kindergartners, making it the first public school in the county to begin in-person learning.
As of Thursday morning, the cause of the fire was still undetermined.
Leslie Chance was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison at the Kern County Superior Court for the murder of her husband, Todd Chance. Leslie Chance was sentenced on one count of first-degree murder along with a firearm enhancement conviction, which each brought sentences of 25 years to life.
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Nineteen years after those unimaginable — and now unforgettable — scenes unfolded on Sept. 11, 2001, many Americans still live with a lingering pain and aftershock. At least four events were held in Bakersfield on Friday to commemorate that dark day and to honor those who were lost to the fi…
More than a dozen California firefighters trying to protect a fire station from flames were overrun by the blaze Tuesday, and several were hurt. Elsewhere, military helicopters rescued more than 150 people stranded in the burning wilderness.
The Guild House reopened for lunch service on Tuesday. The Guild House will serve outdoors Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with limited seating, and curbside from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. The all-volunteer Guild House restaurant in downtown Bakersfield is located at 1905 18th St.
Only time will tell but it's looking like the pistachio harvest just now coming into full swing in Kern County will set a new record this year — without a substantial drop in prices.
Neither kindergarten nor transitional kindergarten is a requirement in California, and many parents in Kern County this year have opted out. But educators and parents who have opted into distance learning for the youngest students say that so far they’re surprisingly optimistic about how the…
Central Valley Bikeways Project, a partnership between CalBike and Kern Council of Governments, designed to improve bicycle and pedestrian connectivity around proposed High-Speed Rail stations. Funded by a Caltrans Sustainable Transportation Planning grant, the project is mandated to increas…
Bakersfield's microbrewery scene was still in the fermenting stages when COVID-19 hit, and it quickly became clear that adjustments would have to be made fast or a lot of craft beer would go down the drain — and along with it, substantial investment in local commercial brewing.
An event held Wednesday at the Kern Veterans Memorial in downtown Bakersfield marked the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II.
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Local salon workers took to the streets Friday morning to protest state rules that have barred them from cutting or styling hair indoors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Monday was the first day of classes for schools across the Bakersfield City School District and Kern High School District. Instruction was held in a distance-learning format to curtail the spread of COVID-19. And, despite some technological glitches experienced in both Zoom and Canvas — the …
The Kern High School District restarted its back-to-school meal distributions on Friday in preparation for the return of school next week. Breakfasts, lunches and dinners for Monday and Tuesday will be provided to students at school sites on Fridays. On Tuesdays, the sites will serve meals t…
SANTA CRUZ — More than two dozen major fires were scorching California on Thursday and taxing the state's firefighting capacity, sparked by an unprecedented lightning siege that dropped nearly 11,000 strikes over several days.
Los Angeles Police Department officers, family and friends attended the funeral of Officer Valentin Martinez, the agency’s first sworn employee to die of complications from COVID-19. A memory service was held Thursday at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills’ Hall of Liberty. Martinez, 45, was a 13-ye…
The Bakersfield National Cemetery held a private ceremony Friday morning to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the end of World War II. Titled "The Spirit of '45" the brief ceremony commemorated August 14, 1945, when President Harry S. Truman announced the surrender of Japan and the effecti…
With the first day of school right around the corner, parents and students at Kern High School District have been picking up chromebooks in anticipation of distance learning during the 2020-21 fall semester. The first day of school at KHSD is scheduled for Aug. 24.
Wednesday marked the start of a new school year for the Greenfield Union School District, but classrooms looked a bit different.
The Bakersfield Police Department, Kern County Sheriff’s Office, Bakersfield City Fire Department, Kern County Fire and Hall Ambulance conducted a drive-by parade Tuesday at Adventist Health Bakersfield, to thank hospital staff for its work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospital workers retu…
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Canyon Hills Assembly of God church partnered with CityServe Kern County to host a Truck to Trunk food giveaway Friday. Approximately 1,800 boxes of fresh produce were supplied to those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic. Food was provided by the United States Department of Agriculture Far…
The aftermath of a massive explosion in the Lebanese capital of Beirut shows a shattered city covered in dust and debris. The blast sent a mushroom cloud into the sky, killed more than 100 people and injured thousands, with more bodies probably buried in the rubble. The explosion carved out …
As of Tuesday afternoon, the fire grew to 2,500 acres and was still at zero percent containment, according to the Kern County Fire Department.
BANNING, Calif. — A wildfire in mountains east of Los Angeles that has forced thousands of people from their homes was sparked by a malfunctioning diesel vehicle, fire officials said Monday.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The biggest, most sophisticated Mars rover ever built — a car-size vehicle bristling with cameras, microphones, drills and lasers — blasted off for the red planet Thursday as part of an ambitious, long-range project to bring the first Martian rock samples back to Earth…
ATLANTA — Hailed as a “founding father” of a fairer, better United States, John Lewis was eulogized Thursday by three former presidents and others who urged Americans to continue the work of the civil rights icon in fighting injustice during a moment of racial reckoning.
Battling COVID-19 is a joint community effort, and Adventist Health Bakersfield demonstrated that Wednesday by donating personal protective equipment to Kern Medical.
As coronavirus continues to spread in Kern County, a federal surge testing unit arrived in Bakersfield on Wednesday. In a press conference announcing the opening of the facility, U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, and others expressed hope that the federal site could help local officia…
420 Kingdom, a cannabis delivery service that opened in June, has exceeded its owners’ expectations. The closest legal dispensary to Bakersfield, the company delivers marijuana products to residents within an hour of the order going through, and discounts customers if the drivers don’t make …
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WASHINGTON — In a solemn display of bipartisan unity, congressional leaders praised Democratic Rep. John Lewis as a moral force for the nation on Monday in a Capitol Rotunda memorial service rich with symbolism.
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Send your images to photos@bakersfield.com with a caption and your name. They will appear in a photo gallery online, and we will do our best to publish them in print.
Kern County consists of 11 cities covering a vast area. But the cities only cover a small portion of Kern's 8,163 square miles. There's a lot of magic and wonder to be found in the more remote areas that serve as a reminder of what a special place Kern County really is. And our readers captu…
As Bakersfield's hospitals fill up with COVID-19 patients, the work of the doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and others who care for the sick has become exhausting and overwhelming. With COVID-19 raging throughout Kern County, these workers describe arriving to work each day to find mo…
PORTLAND, Ore. — U.S. agents have arrested 18 people in Portland this week as the clash with protesters opposing federal intervention in the liberal city turned chaotic for another night, Oregon's top federal prosecutor said. The number doesn’t include arrests made early Friday, when federal…
BEIJING — China launched its most ambitious Mars mission yet on Thursday in a bold attempt to join the United States in successfully landing a spacecraft on the red planet. Engines blazing orange, a Long March-5 rocket took off under clear skies from Hainan Island, south of China's mainland,…
Kern County COVID-19 cases have skyrocketed in recent days and deaths continue to mount. Here's a look at some of the data.
NEW YORK — Workers from the service industry, fast-food chains and the gig economy rallied with organized labor Monday to protest systemic racism and economic inequality, staging demonstrations across the U.S. and around the world seeking better treatment of Black Americans in the workplace.…
Boxes of food were distributed to those in need — in cars and on foot — on Wednesday at the David Nelson Pocket Park in east Bakersfield.
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String of 100 degree days has people heading to pool, spray parks.
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Positive Cases Among Kern Residents: 31,947
Positive Cases Among Non-Residents: 10
Deaths: 369
Recovered Residents:15,964
Number of Negative Tests: 159,244
Number of Pending Tests*: 519
Updated: 9/26/2020. Source: Kern County Public Health Services Department
*As reported by community healthcare providers.
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